Coupling cushiony flooring

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a cushiony flooring capable of being easily manufactured and constructed, with durability of a coupled portion thereof improved. The coupling cushiony flooring includes lower steps  12  formed along two sides of the flooring; an adhesive  16  coated on an upper surface of the lower steps; a release paper  18  attached to the adhesive; and upper steps formed along two sides of the flooring.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a cushiony flooring capable of being laid on various living facilities or accommodation structures to provide a cushion function.

[0003] 2. Background of the Prior Art

[0004] Generally, in playing facilities of babies or various gymnasiums, flooring having a cushion function is laid on an indoor or outdoor floor thereof for the purpose of shock absorption and soundproof. In these days, various floorings are used in various public facilities such as office, assembly hall and so forth.

[0005] Polyurethane or sponge is mainly used as material of such flooring. This is manufactured to have constant dimensions, and is transferred to a location. And then, the flooring is unfolded on the floor, and simultaneously is coupled to each other by means of various coupling means. As one example of the coupling means, coupling recesses are formed at an edge of the flooring such that abutted portions of the flooring are complementarily inserted into each other. This manner has a drawback that the coupled portions are easily detached if shock is applied thereto.

[0006] Meanwhile, in order to solve the above drawback, another means has been proposed by Korean Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 1999-22352, entitled “Simplified indoor flooring”. According to the publication, a surface layer is positioned on the cushion constituting the flooring, with the position of the surface layer being slightly staggered to that of the flooring. The surface layer has the same dimensions as the flooring, and is adhered to the flooring by means of an adhesive. After carrying out the construction, a large gap does not occur in the coupled portion. Accordingly, even though the shock is applied to the coupled portion, the coupled portion is not easily widened, and alien substances come into or out from the gap of the coupled portion. However, there are many problems at carrying out the construction.

[0007] Specifically, according to the publication, the process of adhering the cushion and the surface layer by means of the adhesive is not precisely performed, and many workers are required for performing the process. Accordingly, when the flooring is arranged on the surface of the bottom and is coupled to each other, the coupling portions are not constant and the appearance is not well, thereby unsatisfying the construction.

[0008] In addition, the coupled portion of the cushion and the surface layer is easily detached by the continuous shock.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a cushiony flooring that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

[0010] An object of the present invention is to provide a cushiony flooring capable of being easily manufactured and constructed, with durability of a coupled portion thereof improved.

[0011] To achieve the object and other advantages, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provide a coupling cushiony flooring having a rectangular shape comprising: lower steps formed along two sides of the flooring; an adhesive coated on an upper surface of the lower steps; a release paper attached to the adhesive; and upper steps formed along two sides of the flooring.

[0012] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention. In the drawings:

[0014]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cushiony flooring according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0015]FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the installed state of the cushiony flooring of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 2a is a partially enlarged view of the cushiony flooring of FIG. 2; and

[0017]FIG. 3 is a top plan view showing a coupling state of a cushiony flooring of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] A preferred embodiment according to the present invention will now be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0019]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an assembled state of a cushiony flooring according to one preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which the floorings 1 having a constant shape, i.e., a rectangular shape, are coupled to each other along two sides thereof.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 1, the rectangular cushion 10 may be mainly made of EVA sponge, polyurethane foam or rubber. One cushion is formed with lower steps 12 along two sides, while the other cushion is formed with upper steps along two sides which are symmetrical to the lower steps. The flooring having the above structure may be manufactured through a molding by once. The upper surface of the lower step 12 is applied with an industrial adhesive, and a release paper 18 is attached to the adhesive.

[0021] Specifically, the lower step 12 is strongly adhered to the upper step 14 by means of the adhesive 16 formed on the lower step. The remaining floorings are correctly arranged as the above-mentioned manner.

[0022] The cushion 10 has a transferred printing layer 22 of various colors, such as design, logo or symbol, on the upper surface thereof. The transferred printing layer 22 may be formed by means of a method of attaching a pattern paper, as well as the transferring method using a film. In order to protect the transferred printing layer 22, a transparent urethane coating solution may be sprayed on the upper surface of the transferred printing layer to form a coating layer 20.

[0023] With the above description, the flooring of the present invention is manufactured through a single machining process and is coupled and secured to each other by means of the adhesive. According to the present invention, the flooring having a uniform quality may be manufactured in a mass production. The construction is easily performed, and time and process for constructing the flooring are decreased, thereby saving the personal expenses. Since the appearance thereof is improved because of the transferred printing layer, it is unnecessary to utilize a separate carpet. In addition the coating layer protecting the surface may improve the durability thereof.

[0024] The forgoing embodiments are merely exemplary and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention. The present teachings can be readily applied to other types of apparatus. The description of the present invention is intended to be illustrative, and not to limit the scope of the claims. Many alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A coupling cushiony flooring having a rectangular shape comprising: lower steps 12 formed along two sides of the flooring; an adhesive 16 coated on an upper surface of the lower steps; a release paper 18 attached to the adhesive; and upper steps formed along two sides of the flooring. 